Coming soon to downtown Grand Rapids, Mich., will be famous award winning barbecue restaurant “City Barbeque.” City Barbeque is growing quickly, with a cozy backyard atmosphere, homemade savory foods and caring staff that gives back to the community through fundraisers. Currently, City Barbeque is popular in eight different states and this will be the first ever Michigan location to open.

The restaurant was established in Arlington, Ohio in 1999 and will be celebrating 20 years of business this year. City Barbeque will soon be located at 3050 28th St. SE in Kentwood. This will be their 43rd restaurant to be up and running. 

“We wanted to expand and broaden our horizons,” said Regional Marketing Manager Shelby Morgan. “We wanted to bring our tasteful menu and fun atmosphere to people all over.”

City Barbeque is famous for their fresh, made-from-scratch, authentic barbecue. They try to be original with their own recipes creating unique tastes people will remember and crave. 

“We smoke all our meats on site and all of our food is fresh daily,” Morgan said. “We have three smokers that are running on the clock constantly to smoke the meats to perfection.”

Some of City Barbeque’s popular homemade dishes include their award winning beef brisket, ribs, potato salad, corn pudding, fries and green beans with bacon. They also offer multiple specials as they are constantly trying to reach the college crowd.

“We do a promotion every Tuesday called ‘Rib Bone Tuesday,’” Morgan said. “Our ribs are 40 percent off by the bone, which is so affordable.”

As City Barbeque expands their business into Michigan, they are in current need of employees. They’re mainly trying to reach students at Grand Valley State University with a hard work ethic and positive attitude. Applications can be found online or through Facebook.

City Barbeque strives to deliver amazing food and excellent service to each individual that walks into their restaurant. They want customers to feel at home with their backyard hospitality atmosphere. 

“We like to make people feel welcome by treating them like family,” Morgan said. “It really is a fun and inviting atmosphere for people to just come and enjoy themselves with a little country flare to it.”

Walking into City Barbeque, customers can expect to see a country design set up with lots of lights and rustic decorations. They also have multiple outlets available for people with laptops or phones. City Barbeque encourages students to come out and have a comfortable place to study.

City Barbeque not only focuses on their savory foods and their friendly atmosphere, but also tries to actively help the community. They give back through several fundraising programs. 

“We love supporting schools and organizations,” Morgan said. “I don’t know of any other restaurant that donates 25 percent of the earnings back to organizations.”

The Grand opening of City Barbeque will be on Monday, April 8. In the future, City Barbeque plans to further their reach all over the country and continue to serve people through food and fundraising.